Nested tapered bags

ABSTRACT

Tapered bags are dispensed singly from a nested configuration. They may be made of plastic, paper, aluminum foil, or aluminum foil laminated with plastic. The bags are connected at the top by a strip that has a row of perforations between the strip and the top of each bag, the strips in turn attached to each other by conventional fasteners such as staples. The taper may be formed by folding the bags so that a dispensed bag may be unfolded to have a bottom as wide as the top. A row of closely spaced perforations along the connecting portion between any two bags allows a single outermost bag to be separated by pulling and tearing along the row of perforations.

RELATED INVENTIONS

[0001] Under 35 U.S.C § 121, this application claims the benefit of prior co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/6285,940, “Bag Dispenser,” by Smith et al., filed Jul. 28, 2000, incorporated herein by reference, and is related to U.S. patent divisional application Ser. No. ______, “A Roll of Tapered Bags Suitable for Dispensing Bags Singly,” also filed this date.

GOVERNMENT INTEREST STATEMENT

[0002] The invention described herein may be manufactured, licensed, and used by or for governmental purposes without the payment of any royalties thereon.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0003] This invention relates to improved means and methods for dispensing bags, such as those made of plastic, paper, aluminum foil, or aluminum foil laminated with plastic. Specifically, it provides systems for dispensing bags singly from a nested configuration, such that the bags are open after dispensing.

BACKGROUND

[0004] Bags for packaging of small objects or bulk materials, are produced conventionally in rolls such that individual bags are detached from adjoining bags by pulling and thereby separating the bags along rows of small perforations. These bags may be made of paper, plastic, aluminum foil, or aluminum foil laminated with plastic. The bottom of one bag is typically attached to the top of the next bag in the roll. The edges of the bag openings frequently stick together making the bags often difficult to open. It is often necessary to print directions on the bags to direct the user to the open end.

[0005] Several systems seek to overcome the inconvenient features of conventional bag dispensing systems. Typical examples are U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,989,732, 5,183,158, 5,363,965, and 5,863,130, which disclose thermoplastic bag packs in which bags are stacked side-by-side and supported by racks and handle support members. None of these patents disclose the features of the present invention.

SUMMARY

[0006] The bag dispensing system of this invention seeks to overcome the inconvenience of prior art bag dispensing means. In one embodiment, tapered open bags are nested, i.e., one bag is positioned inside the next until a suitable number is accumulated for dispensing. The bags are tapered on both sides such that their bottoms are narrower than their tops. Connected to each bag's top is an attachment strip that, in turn, is connected to other attachment strips for other bags in the nested configuration by conventional means such as staples. A row of closely spaced perforations is located below each attachment strip that further facilitates opening of each bag after separation of the bag from the attachment strip by pulling and tearing along the row of perforations. The tapered bags can be manufactured either with a tapering shape for the sides of the bag, or bags with straight parallel sides can be folded in such a way as to produce a tapered shape.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0007]FIG. 1A is a frontal view of a nested array of tapered bags attached along a strip at the open ends of the tapered bags.

[0008]FIG. 1B is a frontal view of a nested array of tapered bags attached along a strip at the open ends of the tapered bags with the outermost bag detached.

[0009]FIG. 2 is a frontal view of a single parallel-sided bag folded to form a tapered bag.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0010] In one embodiment, tapered bags are nested one bag inside the next until a suitable number are available for dispensing. The bags are tapered along both sides, such that they are narrower across their bottom edges than their top edges. Each bag is attached at its top to a strip that is a circumferential extension of the bag at its top, the extension in turn being attached to the other extensions of the nested bags by conventional means such as staples. A row of closely spaced perforations below each of the strips facilitates opening each bag as it is separated from the extension strips by pulling and tearing along the row of perforations.

[0011] Refer to FIG. 1A. Tapered bags 21, each having a top opening 22 and a sealed bottom 29, are nested one inside the next. The bag openings 22 are removably attached to strips 25 that are fastened to each other by a suitable fastener 26 such as one or more staples. The strips 25 are extensions of the bag openings 22 and have sufficient width to enable a stack of strips to be fastened together when assembled. A row of perforations 27 separates the strips 25 from the bag openings 22, allowing the removal of single bags by pulling and tearing along the row of perforations 27. The removal of the bag 21 by grasping and pulling on the bottom 29 of each bag 21 of the nested bags 21 is advantageous in that a bag 21 thus dispensed is open when it is removed and no further action is needed to separate the open edges 22 of the bag 21. FIG. 1B illustrates the array of nested bags 21 with one bag 21 partially removed from the array.

[0012] Refer to FIG. 2. This embodiment can be used to dispense bags 21 that are manufactured with an initial taper or parallel-sided bags that are folded to form a tapered bag 21. A parallel-sided bag is folded so that the bottom edge 45 is narrower than its top edge 46. Folding the bag permits a conventional parallel-sided bag to be dispensed in a manner similar to a tapered bag 21.

[0013] Although designed for use in dispensing bags, an alternative use allows dispensing items not used as containers. For example, paper towels and packing materials can similarly be dispensed as nested arrays.

[0014] While there have been shown and described what are considered at present to be the preferred embodiments of the present invention, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that modification of such embodiments may be made. It is therefore desired that the invention not be limited to these embodiments and it is intended to cover in the appended claims all such modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention. 

We claim:
 1. A configuration of bags, to include at least an innermost bag and an outermost bag in a nested configuration, to be dispensed singly comprising: bags each having tapered sides, an open top and a closed bottom, all but the outermost of said bags nested within an adjacent bag; a strip circumferentially extended from said open top of each said bag, wherein said strip incorporates a row of perforations disposed between said open top and said strip; and at least one fastener for connecting said strips in a single embodiment, wherein a single outermost bag is separated from said strip by pulling and tearing said outermost bag along said row of perforations to dispense a bag having an open top and a closed bottom.
 2. The configuration of bags of claim 1 in which said bags are made of plastic.
 3. The configuration of bags of claim 1 in which said bags are made of paper.
 4. The configuration of bags of claim 1 in which said bags are made of aluminum foil.
 5. The configuration of bags of claim 1 in which said bags are made of aluminum foil laminated with plastic.
 6. The configuration of bags of claim 1 in which said fasteners are staples.
 7. The configuration of bags claim 1 in which said bags are folded to form said tapered sides. 